Michael Cohen sentencing memo: Key takeaways

Christal Hayes USA TODAY Published 8:13 PM EST Dec 7, 2018 WASHINGTON – Dozens of pages filed in federal court Friday give fresh insight into Michael Cohen’s world, both of a powerful attorney fixing the president’s problems and of his transition into someone in trouble who became somewhat of an open book for investigators. The two documents filed ahead of Cohen’s sentencing next week in New York reveal a number of bombshells from Cohen’s relationship with Moscow to his secret operation to silence women alleging affairs with Donald Trump before the 2016 election. The 47-pages chronicle both the misdeeds in which Cohen pleaded guilty to in August and last week in a separate case, along with a load of new information he gave to special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating Russian interference in the election and any possible coordination with the Trump campaign. Cohen is due to be sentenced on Wednesday on eight criminal charges, including violating campaign finance laws. The case has been investigated by prosecutors in the Southern District of New York and isn’t directly related to the probe led by special counsel Robert Mueller. The two filings are from prosecutors in New York and with Mueller’s team, where Cohen’s has a cooperation agreement. Here are some of the biggest updates from the two filings: ‘Substantial’ prison sentence recommended There was a pretty jarring difference between the filings from New York and the special counsel’s office. Prosecutors in New York say Cohen hasn’t cooperated in their investigation and argued in… [Read full story]